MILLIONS of pounds were handed out for a cathedral and schools in Hampshire today, as Parliament broke up for the general election.

Winchester Cathedral received £500,000 for new lighting and wiring from a special Government fund set up to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.

Meanwhile, ten academies and sixth-form colleges were handed cash from a £367m fund for small-scale repairs, after an exhaustive Government survey.

The grants – likely to be about £250,000, on average - will pay for upgrades to roofs, classrooms, heating systems, fencing, toilets, kitchens and for the removal of asbestos.

The schools awarded repairs cash are:

Southampton: Monkton Infants' School, Richard Taunton Sixth Form College, St Anne's Catholic School, Ludlow Infant Academy, Hook-with-Warsash Church of England Primary School

Hampshire: Priestlands School, Lymington, St Anthony's Catholic Primary School, Fareham, Cams Hill School, Fareham, Bay House School, Gosport, St Columba Church of England Primary Academy, Fareham.

David Laws, the Liberal Democrat schools minister, said: “This will help to ensure that children across the country can enjoy school and sixth-form college buildings, which are safe, good quality and fit for learning.

“We know that being taught in school buildings in poor condition can have an adverse effect.”